NOMINATION OF PROFESSOR JAMES CRAWFORD SC TO THE INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE

The Australian Government today supported the candidature of Professor James Crawford SC for election as a Judge of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The International Court of Justice is established under Chapter XIV of the UN Charter and has 15 members who are elected for terms of nine years. Elections for five members of the Court are held every three years.

The independent Australian National Group - a body of eminent jurists who serve as members of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague - has informed the Government of its intention to nominate Professor Crawford.

Professor Crawford is an international lawyer with a substantial record of service as Counsel in matters before the ICJ and other international courts and tribunals.

He is a graduate of the University of Adelaide, Whewell Professor of International Law at the University of Cambridge, and holder of a Research Chair at La Trobe University in Melbourne. He has previously been Professor of International Law at the Universities of Adelaide and Sydney

As a member of the International Law Commission Professor Crawford was responsible for two major initiatives - the Articles on State Responsibility and the draft Statute of the International Criminal Court.

He was the member of the Australian Law Reform Commission responsible for reports on Aboriginal customary law, foreign state immunities law and admiralty law.

Professor Crawford’s nomination will be for elections due to take place in the United Nations in late 2014.